appetite 3-24-05

Many foods are associated with the Easter
holiday — ham, coconut cake, marshmallow-chocolate eggs
— but one of the most traditional of all is lamb. Even so, it
usually doesn’t top the list of most popular dishes and is
not typically found on local restaurant menus, even at Easter.

In fact, even though rosemary leg of lamb will
be part of the Easter brunch menu at the Crowne Plaza, it’s
the only time of year the dish is served. And the hotel restaurant
is one of only a few restaurants offering the item for Easter
brunch on Sunday, March 27.

“I feel it’s a traditional part of
Easter,” says Crowne Plaza executive chef Richard Long.
“It has a following for some people. We thought long and hard
about putting it on the menu because we didn’t sell a lot
last year, but I think it’s well worth having. We sell about
half the amount we cook, but I think you have to give people a mix
in variety. Some people really like it.”

Long prepares the deboned leg of lamb by
rubbing it with rosemary, thyme, salt, and pepper, then roasts it
in the oven for about 20 minutes per pound of meat. It’s then
carved and served with mint jelly and fresh mint sauce made with
vinegar water, sugar, and chopped mint.

Long, a native of England, has been a chef at
the Crowne Plaza since its opening in 1997. Although lamb is not as
common here as pork or beef, he says it’s gaining in
popularity as people try it and realize that it’s easy to
prepare. “It’s the same as turkey or roast; it just
takes a little longer to cook,” he says. “I see it more
and more in the stores these days. I think it’s a different
taste profile, and people are not used to it. But as people travel
and taste it elsewhere, they come home and want to try
it.”

According to the American Lamb Council,
American lamb is a prime source of high-quality protein, vitamins,
and minerals. A three-ounce serving provides 43 percent of an adult
male’s Recommended Daily Allowance for protein. Lamb is also
high in B vitamins, niacin, zinc, and iron. Compared with other
meats, lamb contains very little marbling (internal fat throughout
the meat). An average three-ounce serving has 176 calories —
or 7 percent of the average daily caloric intake recommended for a
23- to 50-year-old man. A lamb leg contains 162 calories, 6.58
grams of fat, and 2.4 grams of saturated fat. The same amount of
chicken contains the same number of calories, 6.32 grams of fat,
and 1.74 grams of saturated fat.

So if it contains all these nutrients and
tastes so good, why isn’t it served frequently? Local chefs
say it’s expensive and not easy to get a high-quality product
without much fat. Turasky Meats, which sells meat products to
retail and wholesale customers, sold a small amount to wholesalers
this year for the Easter holiday but usually doesn’t offer
lamb.

“We sell a very small amount. This time
of year, we’ll bring in leg of lamb for wholesale
accounts,” says owner Joe Turasky. “Lamb is very
expensive this year, more so than usual. We were kind of shocked at
the price of lamb.” A boneless leg of lamb was priced at
$8.99 a pound, which was a $1 more a pound than last year. However,
it’s comparable in price to the seasoned prime rib
Turasky’s offers for the Easter holiday, which is more
popular.

“Consumption of lamb is very low
compared to beef and pork,” he says. “It’s sold
throughout the year, but there’s not as much lamb out there in the
marketplace. We will get a few requests but not enough to warrant
keeping it on hand all the time.”

The most popular ways of serving lamb are lamb
chops, a rack of lamb, or leg of lamb. You can prepare a boneless
lamb, but if that’s not available, you can debone and roll it
yourself to make it easier to serve.

If you’re cooking lamb at home, Long
advises roasting a leg, which is the easiest to prepare and
contains the most meat. Coating the meat with herbs reduces the
smell, which some people may find offensive, he says. He likes to
serve it in the traditional way, accompanied by fresh mint sauce.
Lamb may be served with seasonal spring dishes such as roasted
asparagus, fruit salad, or wild-rice salad.

Although lamb is scarce on most local menus,
two local downtown restaurants do serve it year-round. At
Maldaner’s, chef Michael Higgins prepares a braised lamb
shank cooked in lemon and milk with Spanish green olives, garlic,
and rosemary and served with mashed potatoes. Lamb will also be on
the Easter-brunch menu this year. Augie’s Front Burner offers
a lamb rack grilled with fresh herbs and natural jus on its regular menu
but won’t be open for Easter brunch. Gateway to India also
offers lamb in its curry and tandoori dishes, in which the meat is
marinated with spices like mint, cilantro, ginger, garlic, and
yogurt and then roasted slowly in a traditional Indian clay oven.

DirectionsIn a small bowl, mix soy sauce, oil, garlic,
pepper, ginger, bay leaf, thyme, sage, and marjoram. Place lamb on
rack in roasting pan. With sharp knife, make frequent slits in the
surface of the lamb. Move knife from side to side to enlarge the
pockets. Rub herb mixture into each slit. Rub any remaining mixture
over roast. Roast in 325-degree oven for 20 to 25 minutes per pound
or until meat thermometer registers 145 degrees for medium-rare,
160 degrees for medium, or 170 degrees for well-done. Remove roast
from oven, cover, and let stand 10 minutes. Internal temperature
will increase by approximately 10 degrees. Pan drippings may be
used in gravy or skimmed and served au
jus.